Kendrick Perkins Deletes Post Announcing Return to Cavaliers

Kendrick Perkins posted and then deleted a social media post that suggested he was signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to Spencer Davies of Basketball Insiders: 

Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com tweeted that "Perkins has not signed with the Cavs, who intend to let the dust settle with their two roster spots. Head into the All-Star break before filling them."

Earlier on Thursday, Marc Stein of the New York Times reported the "strong expectation in Cleveland that one of the Cavaliers’ soon-to-open roster spots—barring any more trades—will be filled by Kendrick Perkins," adding that the team believes it needs "Perkins’ strong locker-room presence to help them with the big adjustment period looming after today’s series of trades."

Dave McMenamin of ESPN added that Cleveland's plethora of trades on Thursday, which left it two open roster spots, "could be an attractive destination for vets on buyout market" or "could allow for Kendrick Perkins to be called up from Canton for leadership."

Finally, Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reported that the Cavaliers informed Perkins that if he was called up from the G League, it would occur after the trade deadline.

The Cavaliers completely reshaped their roster on Thursday in a series of moves that saw Rodney Hood, George Hill, Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. all join the Cavaliers, while Isaiah Thomas and Channing Frye went to the Los Angeles Lakers, Dwyane Wade headed back to the Miami Heat, Iman Shumpert was shipped to the Sacramento Kings and Jae Crowder and Derrick Rose joined the Utah Jazz, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.

Halfway through the season, the Cavaliers basically started over, with the roster construction they underwent before the season—in large part due to the trade of Kyrie Irving to the Boston Celtics—proving disastrous.

Bringing Perkins back could help smooth the transition, however. The veteran big man hasn't appeared in an NBA game since the 2015-16 season, though his experience and leadership in the locker room may be more valuable to the Cavaliers than his play on the court if he's signed.